Kitchen Conversations, Building a Life in Athens

In this episode, Jaime sits down with Katrin Sakellariou from Hamburg, Germany, to hear the story of how a chance holiday romance on the island of Paros eventually led her to build a life in Athens. Katrin reflects on studying history and education in Germany, falling in love with a Greek-French surfer, and the unexpected path that brought her back to Greece years later. She shares stories of lear...

In this episode, Jaime sits down with Patricia Gisele Tessari from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to talk about the winding journey that ultimately led her back to Athens. After studying English literature and teaching English in Argentina, Patricia first came to Greece in 2018 to pursue a master's degree while teaching Spanish and learning Greek. She reflects on the similarities between Athens and...

In this episode, Jaime sits down with photographer Alisa Glebova, who was born and raised in Vilnius, Lithuania, in a Russian-speaking family. Alisa shares her journey from studying journalism and working as a young reporter in Saint Petersburg to becoming a self-taught photographer determined to build a creative career on her own terms. After spending several years in Portugal, Alisa moved to Ath...

In this episode, Jaime sits down with psychologist Georgiana Darau from Arad, Romania, to explore both her personal journey and the emotional realities of building a life in a new country. Having lived between France and Athens for several years before settling here full-time, Georgiana reflects on culture shock, bureaucracy, family dynamics, and the surprising similarities between Greece and Roma...

In Part 2 of her story, Jaime reflects on her first year in Athens as a Fulbright scholar studying traditional Greek violin. From language lessons and musical discoveries to unforgettable friendships and late nights in Athens' music scene, Jaime finally begins to find the community and culture she dreamed of. But just as she decides to make Greece her home, a tragic accident changes everything...

In this special episode of Kitchen Conversations, Jaime shares her own story for the first time. Growing up in Sacramento, California, Jaime dreamed of becoming a classical violinist and went on to receive elite training at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. But everything changed when she unexpectedly fell in love with the sounds of Greek traditional music. From a rebellious senior...

In this episode, Jaime sits down with Alessandra from Monza, Italy, to talk about her life before and after moving to Athens. Alessandra shares memories of growing up in Monza-from Formula 1 at Parco di Monza to the Duomo and the legendary Iron Crown-before reflecting on her life in Italy and what eventually brought her to Greece. She talks about teaching Italian to foreigners, arriving in Athens,...

In this episode, Soraja talks about living abroad before eventually moving to Athens, and the social burnout that pushed her toward change. She discusses receiving a job offer in Greece, adapting to Athenian work culture, and her surprise at discovering that Greeks can seem reserved at first-but deeply generous once they truly know you. The conversation explores her eventual love for Athens, disco...

Can you ever fully belong in a city that wasn't originally yours? In this episode of Kitchen Conversations, Aga from Warsaw talks about creating a life in Athens-the expectations she arrived with, the reality she discovered, pregnancy and birth in Greece, cultural differences between Warsaw and Athens, and the surprising generosity she found here.

How is Kallia creating a life in Athens? Let's listen! Check out Kallia's website with her kombucha! www.thegreekgut.com

Let's hear about how Naz is building her life in Athens!